Police Raid 13 Locations in Corruption Case, Palace Respects Legal Process
Minister of State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi has stated that the Palace respects every legal process currently being carried out by law enforcement agencies (APH), in this case raids conducted by the Indonesian National Police (Polri) in connection with anti-corruption efforts.
“We all respect every legal process being carried out by law enforcement, in this case the National Police,” Prasetyo said in a written statement to journalists in Jakarta on Friday (10 July).
Prasetyo emphasised the importance of upholding the principle of presumption of innocence. This, he said, is crucial to avoid speculation and unproductive judgements while the legal process unfolds.
He affirmed that President Prabowo Subianto has had a strong commitment from the outset to eradicating corruption in the country. The Head of State, he added, has repeatedly reminded the entire government apparatus, especially state officials, to put their own house in order and clean themselves up before legal enforcement measures are taken.
President Prabowo has also consistently underlined that corruption is one of the biggest problems still shackling the Indonesian nation.
“The President, as Head of State and Head of Government, has repeatedly affirmed that corruption is one of this nation’s greatest pieces of unfinished business,” he said.
Nevertheless, Prasetyo maintained that the various challenges in eradicating corruption must not become a reason to lose heart. The government, he assured, will continue to push for improved governance, strengthened integrity, and the building of a clean administration.
He also stressed the importance of maintaining a conducive situation, stability, and national unity so that the nation’s various problems can be resolved through mutual cooperation.
“Equally important is maintaining conduciveness, stability and unity as fellow children of the nation. Only in a safe, united and mutually trusting atmosphere can we resolve the nation’s problems and accelerate the implementation of development programmes for the welfare of all Indonesians,” he concluded.
For context, a joint team from the National Police’s Corruption Eradication Task Force (Kortastipidkor) and the Jakarta Metropolitan Police previously raided 13 different locations in and around Jakarta. The raids relate to an investigation into alleged corruption and money laundering (TPPU) involving PT PLN (Persero), PT Asabri (Persero) and PT Krakatau Steel.
Head of Public Relations at the Jakarta Metropolitan Police, Senior Commissioner Budi Hermanto, explained that the series of activities formed part of the joint team’s legal measures to gather evidence.
“This is part of the raid activities carried out by the joint team,” he said on Wednesday (8 July).
Most recently, the joint team of investigators seized a number of documents and computer equipment from an empty shophouse (ruko) in the Cipete area of South Jakarta on Friday (10 July). The shophouse was the 13th location raided in the investigation into this mega-corruption case.
The discovery of that location resulted from developments following witness testimony, case reviews, and the tracing of the previous 12 sites.
The police stated that additional raid locations may be added as the legal process unfolds. The police have also committed to continuing to inform the public of developments in the case in order to maintain transparency in the investigation.